STANLEY PARK SEAWALL REOPENS
Last year the “jewel” of Vancouver, Stanley Park was devastated by a serious of windstorms that hit the west coast from November to January. The seawall, which circles Stanley Park, has always been a popular tourist feature but because of the storm damage parts of the popular pedestrian and cycling path had been closed to the public. Now thanks to the extensive cleanup and restoration efforts the pathway is once again open. In the course of the cleanup over 10,000 downed or damaged trees were removed from Stanley Park.. Over 3000 new trees are being planted to fill in the gaps. Now it is up to nature and time to put the “shine” back into Vancouver’s gem.
PHAROS STARTS NEW SEASON- HECUBA: ONE WOMAN’S ARGUMENT
Pharos, the Canadian Hellenic Cultural Society began its 2007/2008 lecture season (the 28th season) on Monday, October 29th at the Hellenic Community Center in Vancouver. The evening opened with the annual general meeting which included the election of the new directors. This was followed quickly by the presentation of the first lecture of the season.
Professor George McWhirter from the UBC Department of Creative Writing was the guest speaker for the evening. His topic was Euripides’ play Hecuba, the widow of the King of Troy who laments her entry into slavery and the sacrifice of her daughter to appease the victorious Greek army. It is more than two millennia since the play was first performed on the hillside in Greece but in one sense nothing has changed during all this time. War and vengeance, the subject of the play are still with us. So also is the desire of parents to outlive their children.
Professor McWhirter spoke on how he was asked to write an adaptation of Hecuba for the Vancouver stage. The play, in the original Greek had not survived the passing of time in its entirety. He researched the adaptations that were done over the years to come up with his own version, parts of which he read as part of his talk.
His adaptation of Hecuba will be presented by Vancouver’s Blackbird Theatre, directed of John Wright, from Dec. 28th, 2007 to Jan. 12th, 2008 at the Vancouver East Cultural Centre. In this version of the play women will play all the roles, including the male roles, a direct reversal from ancient times when men played all the roles.
The next Pharos lecture is scheduled for November 26th when Professor Mark MacPherran, SFU Department of Philosophy will speak on “Socratic Religion”. As usual there is no lecture scheduled for December. The lectures continue in January with John Gaitanakis, Professor Emeritus, Architecture, UBC speaking on “Arcadia in Flames: Reflections on a Fiery Summer in Greece” on January 28th. The last three lectures of the season will take place on February 25th, March 31st and April 28th topics yet to be announced. So circle the dates of all the Pharos lectures on your calendar so as not to miss any of these informative meetings. All the meetings take place at 8pm on the last Monday of the month, in the upper hall of the Hellenic Community Centre on Arbutus Street in Vancouver.
Dimitrios & Katerina Angelatos of Surrey, the Western Bureau of Patrides are very happy to announce the recent addition of two grandsons to their family.
Kirin Makari was born on August 21st to their oldest daughter Margarita and her husband Owen Dyck. Kirin Makari weighed in at 10 lbs, 5 oz. and was 23.5 inches long, a not so little brother for his proud sister Emmalia Katerina.
On October 26th another grandson was born. Reichen Seth is the first child to their youngest daughter Irene and her husband Christopher Morrison. Reichen weighed in at 8 lbs, 3 oz.
HELLENIC COMMUNITY ANNUAL FOOD FESTIVAL
The Hellenic Community of Vancouver held its annual food festival from October 19th – 21st. This annual event is an indoor festival, held at the Hellenic Community Centre on Arbutus Street in Vancouver. This year marked the 30th anniversary of the festival, one of the major fund raisers for the community.
The upper hall of the community centre was turned into a Café. The Café featured mezethes, Greek pastries, loukoumades and coffee. Live bouzouki music was also featured in the Café during the evenings. The mezzanine level featured a room of Greek arts & crafts while another room held craft displays by the children. The main hall was divided into a number of areas. The dining area featured lunch and dinners of roast lamb, chicken, moussaka, spanakopita and salmon while the taverna served souvlaki, gyro, spanakopita, dolmathes and Greek salad along with beverages. The bakery featured a variety of Greek pastries, breads and other items that could be purchased in larger quantities to take home. At the gift store one could purchase Greek souvenirs, hand-made jewellery, cookbooks, children’s books, music CD’s, icons and religious items.
People could also try their luck at the raffle ticket booth. The main prize was two round-trip tickets to Greece, donated by Omega Travel. As the stage featured an ongoing screen show of the sponsors of the festival the folk dance performances took place on the floor. As well as all the activities in the community centre the church was also featured as Father Demetrios led many people through the informative church tours.
